Electric-meter-protecting means



' -May 4 19264.

G. H. sAUToN v ELECTRIC METER PROTECTING 4E/ms Filed August 18, 1922 v 2 Sheets-shew.; 1

@manto/L May 4 1926.

G. H. SAUTON ELECTRIC METER PROTECTING 'MEANS Filed Augst 18. 1'922 2 Sheets-Shed. 2

, Moi

l Squn h Vio 'road and other companies or corporations" engaged in the .generationL and *servicel oil.

Patented May 4, 1926, l.

. UNITED STATES i v` 1,583,601? if y i cnio'nciii` H. vsai-iron,

yTo EDWABDH. WALsiionF omnia-iis,V LOUISIANA.:

or NEW QRLEAiis, Lomellina; Assieiionoiiwoiiasixmiiiiiirii v .Y ANDQNnsiXTEEn'rH To; LoUisgiiUiinT', Ii'aoiir or l Aiiim:critic-iviiiiinn-iieorriofiiiire MEANS.

'vappiicarfioii 'mea iiiigut is, i922.k .seriai No; 5822670.

To al?, whom it 721,-(1-3/100ncern Be it vknown that I, GEORGE H. SA'UToN, a' citizen of theUnited States, residingat Nerv iQrleans, in the parish of Orleans aiidState of Louisiana, have inventedl certain new and useful Improvement-'s inA Electric-Meter-Protecting Means, of which Vthe Vfollowing isla specification. i

Thisiiivention relates` toV electric meter protecting means for usejwith all classes ot electric' and analogous meters to which 'it may be applicable, but particularly ada-ptfv ed for meters of that typecomprising a? ro-A tary mechanically controlled damping disk or' analogous movable component operatively associated Withregistering mechanism.

Y Considerable financial loss ensues-to railelectric current for municipalities., lcoinn'iiinitiesin general, manufacturing plants Vand the like, using electricity 'for'lghting heat-A ing, motor and other'piirposes,*cliie to unauthorized vand nefarious: 'manual nioditicai tion and tampering with the"` mechanism :oie

' electric meters introduced` between a service main and indii'iidiial current" service installations to eect itals'ilication ofthe nie-f y agreements .as `'to seri/ice rendered'. i i

' ter registration and; to correspondingly 're' 4duce" the cost of the currentiised relatively' tothe amount of current-that lliaslieen actuisteredjby such altered meter if peri'nittedto normally operate. i g' f Numerousl methods khave beenladopted gto check theoperationsof tliejrotaryjdamping `fdisk .or other corresponding *movable part Y sidetliebolts or'vhfastenings tliereiiiitor'se#` of an electric meterte slow up the ,operationi l of the said diskor 4part and modify the showing vof the registering mechanisin'withg` out impairing vthe current supplied .throughg the meter, andV among some of the most comq mon practices are, to vdrill small openings through various Yparts-of 'theV casing at posii vtions concealed' from ordinary observation and insert a small' Wire .and cause thelatten'v .to bear againstthe rotary disk ,orv moyable part lwith" suilicient frict'onal pressure to" brake said dislr'or part, or, toysimilarly in-l sert a piecefot cord orV thread intofthe ineter, yandfalso'to4 insert Wire ora similar device into the jointjpartsof ,the metercasing or"'throiigh holt .orV rfastening lopenings begone` of tl'iegiiards or.- protectors. y

7 curing the partsof the meter, tof vellecta check of tlie normal registrationo-tlie me damping dislrjand l' an adjacent fixed part t actiiatingthe"registering mechanism, or,`-to reverse tlieyoperation of the mechanism-'and reduce 'the record showing the amount ofcui'rent used'. Y

f T he main `objects aie, to equip an electric meter with'striictural featuresv that will protector'sliieldthe Working' parts thereof and. prevleiit'iboring l i Y l l '70. Y parts; occludetli'eopenings lfor thefa'stening openings completely through .to the Working 'devices or bolts aroundthe latter com# pletely nlling 'theV same, and prevent sepa- `ratio'i'iof the back ofli-A theiiieter` `casingA 'bythe lpractice -fol` ordinary mechanicalmethods, y -andto so apply thesaidstructuralfeatures as to avoid lthe least modiiicatio-ii or..-inter'fer "ence With: the ist' andardizedV i meter` `eoiistriic'-v tion, and thereby 'etiect and. conserve;v an acl` vcurate registration: of' the :amount of current iised with the possibility LAV'oiffmaliing V.acorof the presentiinventionA rect monetary, chargeiii-accordance `with f i 1With these-land. otherobjects'andadyani tages 'in vieitlie" inif'ention consists: in'zthe construction and arrangement of the-:several parts which will he morefullyghereinater i described and claimed. f

Fig; l* ia frontelevati'on'of-an electric iiietrei' having the improved protecting means appliedthereto;;y l f I f'iliig. ,Q -is a 'reaij 'elevation offA the meter showingV the i back plate removed krand illustrat-ing- Vparticula-rl-y1 the' ,opposite side guards-oi' vprotectors for the damping disk oi' main actuating partvoithefnieterg Fig. 3 alside elevation' o-'fathe lmeter, Y Vshowing .aportiontheref in sectionf o`n-1the,V line-B, Fig. 22, the front glassV enclosing" fglobebeing broken away and shown insection completely `to its 'lower limit;

f Fig. lis' a vdetail side elevation Aofone of the -iiiiproved securing screw 'rods and mit, thereior; and

Figs. 5 "arid arei'detailyiews, respectively,

inside elevationand outer -ace elevation or ico i element, such as a damping disk or analogous Vmovable part magnetically influenced and actuating the registering mechanism in a well known manner. In the accompanying drawings one form of an electric meter is shown, but the invention in view of its intended general application is not limited to any precise forni of construction and organ-ization of meter, and in describing the improved features applied to the particu lar form of meter shown as will be hereinframes 18 have` clear spaces between them after set forth, 'it should be understood that .one development only is adopted for the purposes of demonstrating a convenient and effectively acting arrangement of the improved protecting means.

Referring to the form of meter shownfor the purposes of illustration and demonstration,the numeral 5 designates a casing having a substantially circular body .6 with a depending member 7, to accommodate the several components and electric connecting devices adopted in this type of meter. A shaft 8 mounted for free rotation is disposed in the center o-f the casing and has a damping disk 9 secured theretoand freely movable between and within permanent magnets 10 Vand '11, which are provided with suitable i* windings and disposed and operate as well understood inthe art. The shaft 8 has screw or worm threads 12 formed on a portion thereof, as shown by F ig. 3, to cooperate with a train of gearing 13 for actuation of registering mechanism 14. The operation of this meter will be `readily understood, but briefly explained, the damping disk 9 is rotated through magnetic influence by the current passing through the meter or traversing the course of the electrical connections as in usual devices of this type, the rotation of the disk 9 in turn actuating the registering mechanism through the shaft 8 and train of Y gearing 13'to show the amount of current used in accordance with the scale of measurement adopted and whichis usually in kilowatthours. The casing has a reariiange 15 which assists in the application and securement of the same against a suitable support and is also closed at the rear by a back plate 16 which is snugly fitted therein and is normally located adjacent to the support forr the meter. Overthe front of the meter of the .type shown a glass globe orv casing 17 is fitted, and in some structures it will be understood that this globeinstead of being made of glass as an entirety is constructed of metaland provided with a sight glass over" the dials of the registering mechanism. The electro-magnet organization has associated therewith frame `plates 18 with lower downwardly converging side members 19 between which the damping disk 9 is mounted to rotate. These frames 18 are duplicated at the front and rear and held rigidiwithin the substantially circular body 6 of the casing 5. The front glass globe or casing 1-7is usually secured by screw rodsextending therethrough and between the Yparts of the meter at the front and through the lower converging members 19Vof the frames 18, the rear ends of these screw rods projecting through the back plate 16 and having nuts ordinarily applied thereto and easily removable. Moreover, in the usualconstruction of this type of meter the lower downwardly converging members 19 of the Vao tecting means as will be presently explained there is no modification of the. general organization of the meter construction necessary, it being possiblev to apply the improved lprotective devices embodying the features of the invention not only to the particular form of meter shown in the drawings but to other meters, as hereinbefore specified.

One vof the principal features ofthe improved protectingv means consists of side guards or protectors 20 inserted between the lower converging members 19 of the frames 18 and formed of glass or any hard material that will resist penetration by a drill or other boring means.k There is one vof 'these protectorslocated at veach side of the meter mechanism between tlierframe members as above set fort-h, and it is preferred that the upper extremities of the guards or protectors 20 be curved and projected high enough, as at 21, to shield the damping disk 9 over opposite portions of the periphery thereof to obstruct any downward diagonal or angular insertion of devices that may be intended to engage the said damping disk. vllurtherf more, each guardv or protector 2O stands out ybeyond the outer edges of the members 19 of the frames 18 and has an angular flange 22 following the contour thereof and adaptyimpenetrable guards or protectors20 close-` ly follow the contour ofthe adjacent casing wall 23 fully to the bottomvof the substantially circular body 6, on in other words, to lill up all the space possible at opposite portions of the casing between the periphery lof iagssaoa such an extent as to 'render it impossible 'to introduce Wires or other implements :into the l side Wall of the casing as nWell' as vthe' front` Wall for the purpose of reaching and check-y ening devices connecting the said frames, and

also lby the fastening means or screw rodsffor thef'ront dome enclosure or casing '17, which. 'inthe present instance vis shown as.l

lfleeing formedv of glass to clearlyeigposefthe The securingmeans or screw'rods for the 'glass dome or enclosure 157 also embody features of the improvement. As liereinhefore specified, `the fastening means for lthe. glass dome'orfron't enclosing `casing 17' are Vin the `form of elongated screwifrods orclampin-g devices 24 wliichg arel inserted through 'openings 25' and 26 inr the frontcasing Wall 23 of tlie'mainbody ofthe casingv and the upper portions of the'guards orfprotectors 20. The rear screw-threaded ends of the screw or clamping'rods 24 project'tlirough openings 27 in thel baci; plate 16, andithereover are applied cap .nuts28` which have router heads 29 hearing` against the `rearjsidefof thesaid back plate; Thefront side 30 of the glass dome 17 is flat and formed Withjde'pressioiis Slwli'i'cli farefcentrally loored*1 as '32.; The `features of the screw or clamping rods'2'4 lcont'rilouting tothe protection iof the meter consist `first in Lproviding the shanlvfofieachjrod 'adjacent to its outerfend Withranielongated taperedenlargement having its maximum diameter 34 snugly fitting inthe outerportion of the opening 32 andcompletely fil-ling the latter, to obstruct introduction .through theopening Vbeside .the tapering or conical i enlargement of a A*Wire or other analogous' implement *for the purpose of reaching Vand ing disk 9. On the outer end ofeacli 'screw or clamping rod 24 is a flat head 35 of rather large diameter as compared to the heads of these rods as ordinarily formed and taking up very nearly all of the area of the depression or seat l-and completely covering thev opening 32, or the joint between the Walll of thisl opening and the conical or tapering enlargement 83. By this means it will he `seen ythat it Will he impossible to introduce any sort of device through the opening 32 and, therefore, the damping rdisk l9V Willv he shielded and protected at a point which under the ordinary construction may be utilized foi' tampering with the damping disk. The next feature of improvement embodied Vlrby each of tlieclamping or screvvrods 24 is that instead -of leaving the cap nut 28 yengaging the back plate 16 free for removal', the rear the disk and the surrounding 'casing kWall ,tol

"operating mechanism' 'at thefroiit of the endolf the'screw por; clamping` rod Vvvhi'el'i proy yjects slightlyy beyond the capi 29 is fs'W'aged J -orupsetover thecap nut, tolpieventremoval -ofthelatterand this V:positive secu'reinent ofthe rear 5 end of 'the screxvl yor ,clamping rod 24W-ill insure aftight engagem'entnof therv fro'i'itflan'ged and coiiically enlargedrend-of Vthe said' rod l`with the front'vvall or side 30 ofthefglass dome/or casingflv and the Yopeii- Y -32tlirougl'i which the-screwv or clamping rod islinserted." It will also be seenl that each screrv or clamping rod '24: serves to elfec'tive-k ly :securev the guard for lpertectorQO through Wliicl'ifitfpasses'in'applied position, and as `a further protective feature,fto prevent "any possibilityy of severing either" clamping'frod" Wher'elitpasses ythroughthe rear portion (if thefc'asi'ng and the guard, thefpenetration of' the glass or other-impenetrable guard or yprotectorl'iyfa cuttingfmeans will *be 'o=lo- 'structed-and preventV such separation. f It will'therefore beseen'that each guard 2O and scretv .or clamping rod 24 has'dua'l' functions, veacli guardr not only shielding andl preventlng temperine engagementiwi'th the 'disk 9 .andr Valso shielding *the rear `portion j of" the' rod passing therethrough,l vand 'each erode not Aonly servingl asa securing meansffor holding Y 'or' back platell in firmly'j'applied position,

but at'vthe Sametime obstruct any effort that that Vmay loev made -to insertar vvvireorother 'implement yWit'liiiithe interior offthe'fdonie 'the Afrontdome or 'enclosureL v17 'and therear in such ymanner-fas to-gprevent removal of the 'cap nut 28; said back plate Will 'be held firmly intactfvvitlrtlie' reary fof the casing 'and removal thereof*and"tamperingV A'Wit-h the damping vdisk 'from the; `rear .portion of the meter .I'i're'vente'd.y Y v From the foregoing'vit'will be seen that.

tlielpartslof the improvementare all easily appliedwithout inthe least changing or re- .obstructing the free operation of the damp- I organizing Vany ofthestiaictura-l features of the Vmetera .and the use of the improved protective means involves very little expense, particularly in View of the great saving to a corporation on company controlling the me ter due to obstruction at any point of the insertionof means to check or interfere With the operation ofthedamping disk 9, or to directly manipulate this disk ,and thereby permit the meter to operate accurately and electricmeter and protecting meansvvvithiii said casing' for shielding ,the magnetically controlled movable partwhich actuates the registering mechanism and preventing tam-v pering With the same from the exterior of llO rio

magnetically controlled member Within the casing and registering mechanism actuated by said member, of elongated securing means extending through the openings ot the closure devices andthe interior of the casingV f and arovided with relativel elongated taill) pered extremities yat their front portions to deflect theinsertio'n of a rod,f\vire or the like through the said openings and prevent engagement With the movable member.I said. securing means also having outer diametrically enlarged' disk-like heads for snugly fitting the openings in the front closure device and serving' as auxiliary means for reaching the openings from the exterior and preventing straight insertion of wires and the like through the said openings, the opposite ends ot' the rods having means immovably secured thereto and requiring cutting and destruction thereof to separate the rods from the closure devices.Y

2. The combination with an electric meter having casing with, frontY vand rear closure devicesV providedl with openings therethrough, a movable magnetically controlled member Within the casing and registering mechanism actuatedl by said member, of securing rods extending transverselyr through the openings: of the casing of the front and rearrclosure devices and formed at their front extremities With elongated tapered enlargements to completely lill the openings through which they pass to prevent straight insertion of Wires and like devices through the openings to reachthe said movable member and also thereby obstruct engagement with the registering mechanism from the exterior of the casing, the rear endsl of the rods having permanent securing means to prevent displacementv of theclo-` `sure vdevices and requiring cuttingoftl said means to open up the casing.

E3. The combination with an electric meter ot a casing, with front and rear closure devices forme'dwvith openings therethrough on opposite. sidesot the centerthereof, the'opcnings inthe tace of the front closure device having exterior depressions therearound, a movable magnetically controlled member Within the casingl and registering mechanism actuated by said member, of connecting rods vextending transversely through the casing and the openings of. said closure devices and having their front extremities formed WithV elongated enlargements diverging towardsouter ianged heads integrally formed therewith to completely lill the depressions and openings through'I-Which: the enlargements pass and also cover the openings through the medium of the flanged heads at such distances "from the tapered enlargements as to prevent the insertion of Wires andY the like through the openings into the interior-of the casino' for the our ose of enUaOin the regt? l Y b t3 d,

istering mechanism from the exterior of the casing.

t. The combination With an electric meter having a casing With front and rearclosure devices having openings therein, a magnetically controlled movable member Within the casing and registering mechanism actuated by the said member, of protecting means Within the casing adjacent to opposite portions or" the said member to prevent reaching the latter from the exteriorv of the'casing,

and connecting rods extending transversely through th-e casing and the lirontV and rear closure devices and also through the protecting means and completely lilling and covering the openings through the front closure device and permanently secured against the v rear closure device.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

GEORGE H. sAUToN. 

